Ryan Ludwick
Ryan Andrew Ludwick (born July 13, 1978 in Satellite Beach, Florida) is a Major League Baseball right fielder for the St. Louis Cardinals. His brother Eric played four seasons in Major League Baseball as a pitcher. High school Ludwick attended Durango High School (Nevada) in Las Vegas, Nevada. UNLV Rebels Ludwick played for the UNLV Rebels for three seasons before being drafted in by the Oakland Athletics in the second round, 60th overall. At UNLV, where he was named to the Baseball America all-Freshman team in after batting .354 with 16 home runs and 68 RBI, he was All-WAC in , hitting .381 with 13 home runs and 69 RBI. Ludwick had a .363 career batting average at UNLV.http://www.ryanludwick.com/information.htm Early career Ludwick was originally a second round draft choice of the Oakland Athletics. Ludwick was traded to the Texas Rangers before the season, along with Gerald Laird, Jason Hart, and Mario Ramos, for first baseman Carlos Peña and pitcher Mike Venafro. Ludwick made his major league debut with the Rangers in , but his season was cut short when he fractured his hip in 2002, an injury which significantly hampered his career. In , Ludwick was traded by the Rangers to the Cleveland Indians for pitcher Ricardo Rodríguez and outfielder Shane Spencer. Ludwick spent the season playing for the Toledo Mud Hens, the Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, and was named to the International League team for the 2006 Triple-A All-Star Game. Ludwick enjoyed great success in the Detroit organization, but the Tigers just had too many young outfielders, therefore they let him go. St. Louis Cardinals In , Ludwick was invited to spring training by the Cardinals and started in Triple-A Memphis. On May 6, , Ludwick was promoted to the Cardinals after Preston Wilson went on the DL. Ludwick had been hitting well for Memphis. His fast start in earned him an everyday player role. Ryan was named to his first All-Star game on July 6, and played it at Yankee Stadium. Ludwick won the National League Player of the week the week of July 27-August 2. On August 14, Ludwick hit his 29th home runhttp://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/gamelog?playerId=5036 Game log 2008 of the 2008 season; this broke the record for the most home runs in a season by a player who throws left-handed yet bats right-handed previously held by Ricky Henderson.http://www.baseball-reference.com/sotd/archives/743 most home runs by a player throwing LH batting RH Ricky Henderson. Ludwick won a Silver Slugger Award for his offensive performance in 2008 along with fellow outfielders Matt Holliday and Ryan Braun. Ludwick is mainly a right fielder, but also gets playing time in left field and occasionally in center field. Career statistics }} References External links * *Ludwick player profile page at stlcardinals.scout.com Category:Major League Baseball outfielders Category:Major League Baseball players from Florida Category:St. Louis Cardinals players Category:Texas Rangers players Category:Cleveland Indians players Category:Modesto A's players Category:Sacramento River Cats players Category:Oklahoma RedHawks players Category:Akron Aeros players Category:Buffalo Bisons players Category:Toledo Mud Hens players Category:Memphis Redbirds players Category:UNLV Hustlin' Rebels player Category:National League All-Stars Category:Outfielders Category:Right Fielders Category:Center Fielders Category:Players